Service delivery protests reach record high in 2018

The worst affected province is the Eastern Cape, followed by Gauteng. There was a slight increase of protests in the Western Cape and Free State.

“The footprint of protest activity is increasingly evident across a diverse range of communities – from cities to rural areas, with the range of issues including growing demands for housing and job opportunities in urban areas to basic services and better governance in smaller municipalities,” Karen Heese, economist at Municipal IQ, said in a statement on Wednesday.

As of 30 June, this year, the province with the least protests was Mpumalanga at 3%. In third place after Eastern Cape and Gauteng was the Western Cape at 15%, followed by KwaZulu-Natal at 14%, North West at 9%, Northern Cape at 6%, and Limpopo at 5%. The protests have become more violent in recent years, said Municipal IQ MD Kevin Allan.

”Service delivery protests have become a daily feature of South African life with an alarming increase in violent confrontations between protesters and police. As a result, the opportunity for communities to engage constructively on grievances is lost and municipalities need to work to ensure that channels for such communication remain accessible and relevant.”